Cancer cells get help migrating through the body

Some fibroblasts straighten connective fibers to create easy-to-travel paths

head and neck cancer cells

MAKING TRACKS  Head and neck cancer cells (red) crawl along tracks (green) laid down by cancer-associated fibroblasts. Such tracks may help cancer spread throughout the body.

B. Erdogan and Donna Webb/Vanderbilt Univ.

SAN DIEGO — Some helper cells may smooth the way for cancer cells to move, a new study suggests.